Pinheiro to Visit Burma

Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, a special investigator for the UN Commission on Human Rights, will visit Burma tomorrow on a military-supervised fact-finding mission to asses the country’s progress on human rights. But opposition groups are skeptical that his investigation of claims made in the report "License to Rape" will be able to unearth the truth behind the allegations. "It is totally impossible for him [Pinheiro] to investigate and receive true information about the case," says U Khun Tun Oo, Chairman of the Shan National League for Democracy. "It is certain that nobody will dare talk about the rape cases inside Burma, because the people know that if they open their mouths today, they will be in trouble tomorrow." In June, the Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN) and Shan Human Rights Foundation (SHRF) released the report, "License to Rape", that details 625 acts of sexual violence committed by Burmese armed forces against Shan women since 1996. Last month, the ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) invited Pinheiro to visit the country to investigate the report. Soon after its release, the SPDC launched its own investigation in Shan State and immediately dismissed the report as baseless accusations by ethnic and dissident groups in exile. The visit to Shan State and the border areas by the junta’s committee reportedly was not to genuinely investigate the case but to shut peoples’ mouths. "We have heard from Shan State that the junta’s committee ordered the locals not to talk about the case and forced them to put in writing that they know nothing about the sexual violations committed by the army," says Nang Hseng Noung of SWAN. "It is not enough for Pinheiro to gather authentic information only inside Burma." A spokesperson for SHRF explains: "Even if he goes to Shan State, he won’t see or find any evidence. That will mean there are no such sexual violations there." Pinheiro has been to Burma three times previously to assess human rights violations perpetrated by the junta. In a recent report to the UN General Assembly, he said, "There was evidence that arrests of political prisoners were diminishing and that the government was trying to root out and discipline officials who tortured such prisoners." In September, the military regime arrested about 30 dissidents and has routinely arrested other dissidents in recent months. "Mostly, the information that he gathers is different from the realities so his reports are weak," adds Nang Hseng Noung.